


Personal Finance and Literary Pursuits

by Isadore



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Episode: s03e04 Remedial Chaos Theory, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Heat Death of Borders, Shopping Malls
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-22
Updated: 2017-08-22
Packaged: 2018-12-18 13:23:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11875404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Isadore/pseuds/Isadore
Summary: He sees a sweater in a shop window and thinks of her.





	Personal Finance and Literary Pursuits

**Author's Note:**

> Once, many moons ago (October 25, 2011), I posted this onto livejournal under the handle "likethose" because there was a Jeff/Annie livejournal fic group I wanted to post it to. It was the only post I ever made on the account and so, as livejournal does, it purged the account. It warned me this would happen, but I kept procrastinating until it finally did. Anyway, here it is again. Very first fanfiction I ever wrote. Some dialogue taken directly from Remedial Chaos Theory, as it was from a timeline that didn't happen but would have happened if the conditions were right....so I made the conditions right.

He sees a sweater in a shop window and thinks of her. It's goddamn pathetic. It makes him angry. His fingers tighten into fists and he stomps away, trying to think of anything else. But she's there in his head now and she won't get out. He shoves his hands into his pockets and decides to see if he can make permanent fingernail indentations into the palms of his hands.

That works until he hears a laugh that he's sure is just his mind playing dirty tricks. But being sure is not enough, so he looks. It's not a trick; she's right there. She's holding baby Ben on one hip like he belongs there and Shirley is chasing Jordan and Elijah out of Victoria's Secret, and she is just laughing like it's the funniest thing. Which, he has to admit as a grin comes unbidden to his face, it _really_ is.

He doesn't realize he's stopped walking to stare at them like a creeper until a women over laden with bags accidentally smacks him with a few as she walks past. "Sorry," he mutters, and starts walking again. The mall was a bad idea. He can go to Sephora another time.

And then they're crossing the aisle over to his side and right as he's about to turn around and walk the other way to avoid getting caught she says his name in that way only she's ever said it; like it's a lyric in a song, high and light and musical and he can't turn away. She smiles so brightly at him that he can't help but return it. "Heeey," he calls out to her- no- all of them.

Jordan and Elijah notice him then and they rush over because, let's be honest, he _is_ the coolest. They start telling him about their first trip inside Victoria's Secret: Elijah clearly excited about the prospect of women's underwear and Jordan more excited by the adventure itself. He high fives them both in turn just as Shirley stops in front of him with her comically large purse and five even larger shopping bags and gives him an admonishing, "Jeffrey!"

"What?" he defends himself. "You don't think it's awesome that Andre sent them on a scouting mission for pink pajamas?"

She eyes Jeff warily- she knows he's got a silver tongue- but before she can call him out for lying her oldest little angel pipes in, "Jeff! Dad said not to tell!" going along with Jeff all too easily. Shirley and Annie both squeak with excitement and Jeff makes a mental note to text Andre later. "Mom!" Elijah looks at her seriously, and he looks so much like Andre in that moment that it's a little scary. "It's a _secret_."

"Don't worry, sweetie," Shirley tells him in her 'I made brownies' voice, "I'll keep quiet."

Elijah rolls his eyes like he doesn't believe her, but looks at Jeff and gives him the biggest shit eating grin. Jordan just laughs: he has no idea what just happened.

"Jeff," she says his name again, and he forces himself to look at her and tries with all his might to keep his heart from beating faster. "Here," she says next and before he can protest baby Ben is in his arms.

How. Did. This. Happen. Babies and Armani don't mix. She knows that, right? He tells himself he is way too cool to panic about this. Way. Ben stares at him wide-eyed and Jeff stares back. He raises a single eyebrow at the kid, and then Ben is giggling up a storm and Jeff can't help but smile at him. There should be some kind of law against being that cute.

In the back of his mind he can hear Annie saying something about Pierce's birthday while she digs through a bag that is hanging off of one of Shirley's arms. She's having trouble finding whatever it is, so Shirley starts digging too. The boys get bored and start playing tag and quickly decide Jeff is 'safe.' Ben gets excited by all the action and flails his arms, smacking Jeff's shoulder with little hands that he imagines are just covered in his own saliva. He's surprised to find that he doesn't care. He thinks instead about the fact that he is getting beat up by a tiny little dude with an afro and laughs. Ben just keeps smacking. Jeff decides to bring his hand up and turn the smacks into high-fives. Ben thinks this is just about the best thing ever and begins smacking Jeff's hand in earnest, giggling insanely. At the same moment, Jordan hugs his waist and declares "I'm safe!" And suddenly, a biological clock Jeff didn't even know he had starts ticking and he thinks, yeah, this is nice.

At the commotion, the ladies look up from their search and they both 'awwww' at him. Jeff rolls his eyes. "Whatever," he tries to scoff, but can't stop smiling. Jordan takes off again and his eyes follow him until they catch Annie's and she looks at him like she knows exactly what he was thinking. He swallows his heart back down his throat and looks back at Ben. The little guy clearly knows the secret to happiness.

"Here it is!" Annie says as she pulls a book out of the bag and presents it to Jeff for his approval. It's a copy of _Consumer Gadgets: 50 Ways to Have Fun--and Simplify Your Life--with Today's Technology ... and Tomorrow's_.

"Like Pierce needs any encouragement to get another remote control spy helicopter or set of ear-noculars," he tells her and her smile falters. Damn. "Which just means that he'll love it," he assures her.

Her smile returns full force and she gives one excited bounce on the balls of her feet before returning the book to its bag. She shouldn't be allowed to bounce. God, he's a creep for even thinking that. He notices that Ben has stopped hitting his hand and he looks over at him. The kid is staring at Annie. Jeff smirks. If that's not vindication, he doesn't know what is.

"Well, Jeffrey, it was very nice running into you, but it's getting close to dinner time and I should really get these boys home," Shirley tells him sweetly as she takes Annie's bag off of her arm and hands it over to her. "Will you help me out to the car, Annie?" she knows better than to ask Jeff.

Annie gives her a guilty look. "I actually parked by the food court. Sorry!"

"Don't be! My boys can carry the bags and I'll take Ben. Boys!" she calls as she puts down the rest of the bags and crosses over to Jeff. She coos at Ben and he hands him over, trying hard not to show his reluctance. So maybe babies and Armani mix better than he thought.

The boys run over to Jeff and he high-fives them goodbye as Annie and Shirley hug. "Drive safe, Annie!" she tells her friend as her boys gather up the shopping bags. Jordan holds his as high as he can like it's some testament to his strength and Jeff can't help but smile. "Enjoy shopping, Jeffrey!" her tone is the same as it was with Annie, but when he looks at her she is giving him a look that seems to say 'or else!' As if he's not allowed to be alone with Annie.

"Goodbye, Shirley," he tells her with false sincerity and Shirley's eyes go wide, realizing her actions have probably insured that Jeff is going to do exactly the opposite of what she wants. She should know by now that Jeff and authority don't mix, and he's certainly not going to do anything just because she thinks he should.

"Bye!" Annie calls after them. Jeff looks back over at her. He shouldn't be allowed to be alone with Annie.

"Well, this was fun, but I'm gonna go home." Damn Shirley and her damn judgmental eyes.

"Oh! Okay," Annie is surprised, and then disappointed. "Where are you parked?" she asks hopefully.

"Food court," he answers truthfully. Maybe he wants this after all. "Walk with me?" Yeah, he does.

She beams up at him and falls in step beside him as he starts off. "Of course!" The food court is on the opposite side of the mall.

"So what else did you get?" Jeff isn't really interested, but small talk is necessary to keep any serious subjects at bay.

"Just books. Borders is on it's last legs, so everything was really discounted. I can't really afford to just buy things, you know?" He doesn't. "So it was nice to be able to get a few books for myself. Finding that one for Pierce was serendipitous- I was just going to make him a card. I mean, I'm still going to make him a card. It's just nice that I'll have a gift to give with it," she tells him happily.

"You're a good friend, Annie." So much for the small talk.

She shrugs and blushes. "You guys are my family," she tells him simply and truthfully.

"Am I still the dad?" he blurts before he can help himself.

She smirks at him and he knows she going to say something that she thinks will rile him up. He sighs. He supposes he was asking for it. Her smirk softens to a smile and she shrugs again. "You were really good with Shirley's boys back there," she tells him like that's supposed to answer his question.

"They're good kids. If being a parent was like that all the time, I'd seriously consider it," he says with a tone he hopes is teasing.

"Really?" Annie asks, surprised. Apparently his tone is lost on her.

He rolls his eyes. "Don't read into that. They're good kids," he repeats, as if that somehow makes his admission any clearer.

"They are," she agrees. "And I don't think you're the dad," she looks up at him with those big doe eyes and he wants to melt.

"Yeah?" is the only thing he can manage to reply.

"Yeah," she smiles. And then it quirks back into a smirk and he knows something is coming. He narrows his eyes at her suspiciously. "You're more like the creepy uncle," she finishes with a laugh and takes off, skipping away from him.

"Not cool!" he calls after her, but he can't deny that's exactly what he felt like earlier. He's pretty sure that Radiohead song was written about him. He thinks about letting her just run away, but then she looks over her shoulder with that competitive glint in her eyes and he can't help but take off like a rocket after her. She screams girlishly and trades skipping for running.

He catches up with her quickly; his legs are so much longer than hers. She tries to hide behind a kiosk selling those stupid hair feathers, and it's so ridiculous that she'd even try to hide that he laughs. He can't laugh and run at the same time, so he stops running. Annie decides that means it's safe, and she steps back into his line of sight and smiles at him slyly. He smirks back and crosses his arms. She rolls her eyes and comes to stand in front of him. "I don't think you're creepy," she assures him.

"You're just saying that to make me feel better," he accuses.

She rolls her eyes again and links her hand through his elbow and starts walking, tugging him along. "Not everything is about you, Jeff."

"Don't remind me," he teases with a grin.

They're by Sbarro now. Their walk is coming to an end and he unconsciously slows his pace. Her hand is warm on his arm and he can't help but want to be this close to her forever. Closer, really. He swallows hard and tries to think about something else. But she's not just in his head anymore and thinking about anything else while she is touching him is physically impossible.

"So what other books did you get?" he tries again with the small talk.

"Just some light reading," she answers evasively.

"You mean romance novels," he teases.

She gasps, offended at his assumption. "As if!" Her denial just makes him more certain, and he grins and reaches into her bag with his ridiculously long arm and plucks out a book easily. "Jeff!" she protests and lets go of his arm and tries to grab it back. He holds it above his head where she can't reach and she huffs as he pushes the first set of exit doors open and steps into the small foyer and brings the book down to his eye level.

It's not a romance novel. It's TimeLife's _Home Safety and Security_. His smile falls. "Annie..." he starts softly, but doesn't know how to finish. He decides he sucks at small talk and shouldn't even try anymore.

She snatches the book back and shoves it back into the bag. She doesn't look at him.

"You have to move out of that apartment."

She crosses her arms and shakes her head. A random mall patron walks between them on the way out. Jeff takes Annie's arm and pulls her aside, away from the foot traffic. "I can't," she tells him and tries to break away him his grip. But he's not letting go.

He grips her shoulders with both of his hands. "Yes, you can. It's an awful place. I worry about you all the time. You're really important to me, Annie." He can't believe the words that are coming out of his mouth. He means every one of them. Which, for him, is really rare.

She looks up at him with big, sad eyes. "You're not listening to me, Jeff. I said 'can't', not 'won't'. It's... all I can afford," she admits finally, looking away from him.

"Then stay with me," he says without thinking.

She breaks away from him in a huff, bolting for the door. He's so shocked by her response that he doesn't even go after her at first. But he finally forces his feet to move and pushes the door open with more force than is really necessary and yells after her. "I'm serious!" He jogs to catch up with her. "It's too dangerous there."

She glares at him over her shoulder. "I'm not a kid, Jeff. I don't need protecting."

"Even adults need to be protected sometimes, Annie," he returns. She stops suddenly and Jeff almost runs into her. They're at her car. It's a 1991 Taurus sedan and probably its own special type of death trap. He holds her arm and turns her around to face him. "Stay with me," he nearly begs.

Her eyes are shining with moisture and her lip is quivering and he knows exactly how close to crying she is. "I just-" she starts, shaking her head. "I'm just so tired of being a failure," she admits as the tears start to roll down her cheeks.

His grip on her arm tightens and he wants nothing more than to wrap his arms around her and hold her close. But he doesn't. "You are not a failure," he tells her with certainty.

"I got addicted to pills and dropped out of high school! My mom disowned me when I went to rehab! I can't get government sponsored student loans because my parents, who no longer support me, make too much money. I can barely afford to pay rent and eat at the same time. I'm a failure, Jeff- it's what I do! Failing to live on my own was so inevitable I should have known better than to even try."

He wants to save her with one of his speeches and make her feel better, but he can't think of one quick enough. "Getting a roommate isn't failing," is the best he can come up with on short notice.

She laughs hopelessly, wiping furiously at her tears. "Jeff, I appreciate your offer. I really do. But I think you already know why it would be a bad idea for us to be roommates."

"Because I'd copy all your homework instead of actually learning the material?" he tries levity this time.

"Goodnight, Jeff," her voice is surprisingly steady as she turns away from him and starts fishing for her keys. But he hasn't let go.

"Annie..." he starts. But like usual, he doesn't finish. He never knows how to finish anything with her. She's always the one with a plan. "Tell me what to do." She finds her keys and looks over her shoulder at him, her face a hard mask of indifference. He winces, because he's pretty sure he taught her that.

"Do what you want, Jeff. Isn't that what you always do?" Low blow. It momentarily paralyzes him as she turns back to unlock her car. He tells himself he doesn't know what he wants, but he knows that's a lie.

He lets go of her and puts his hand on the hood of the car and leans close to her. "I am _really_ trying here, Annie." He feels like a giant this close to her small form.

Her shoulders sag just the tiniest bit. She sighs, frustrated, and leaves her keys hanging in the door when she turns to face him. "That's never worked very well for either of us, has it?"

That makes him angry. He's supposed to be the cynical one, not her. "Yeah, well, you know what they say: try, try again."

"They also say that madness is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

"It's a good thing I'm doing things differently, then," he says as he leans in and kisses her before she can even gasp in surprise. And it is different. Because even though it's not their first kiss, it is the first time he's initiated. He's not afraid anymore. Well, okay, so he's still _terrified_. But somehow between the mall and the parking lot he found a way to be brave.

He brings his right hand to cup her face and his left gropes blindly for- there!- her keys. He re-locks the door and then pockets them easily. He breaks the kiss with a sigh and brings his left hand up to her face as well and looks at her seriously. "Stay with me," he asks her softly for the third time.

She looks up at him, swallows hard, and relents. "Okay."


End file.
